


Winter Blossoms

by KayyteeLynne



Series: Pokemon [1]
Category: Pocket Monsters: Sword & Shield | Pokemon Sword & Shield Versions
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-29
Updated: 2020-10-29
Packaged: 2021-03-08 23:14:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,616
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27264823
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KayyteeLynne/pseuds/KayyteeLynne
Summary: After beating Galar’s Champion (and personal friend) Leon, Tate was looking for new adventures in the world with her trusted pokemon at her side. Her dream as a pokemon trainer was to explore the world outside of Galar, but there was still more of Galar for her to explore. And after spending her summer on the Isle of Armor, she ventured south of her hometown of Postwick into the frigid landscape of the Crown Tundra, drawn to the mysterious legends that once attracted tourists from all over. She will quickly realize that plenty of secrets lay hidden amongst a blanket of white.
Relationships: Protagonist / Peony
Series: Pokemon [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1990759
Comments: 1
Kudos: 6





	Winter Blossoms

Tate couldn’t remember when it happened, exactly. Truth be told, she had slept most of the trip, her beloved Lycanrock stretched out across her lap, and Cinderace seated across from her. But it was Xena’s yawn that caused her to stir, and when she looked out the window, the world rush passed her in a blur of white. She blinked in an attempt to orient herself. If she hadn’t felt the clacking of the train beneath her, she would have been sure she was lost in a void. Outside, the world had no edges. The gray sky seemed to meld into the white ground with no distinct horizon line. There were no trees or buildings to disrupt the landscape. In fact, there seemed to be no sign of life at all.

A soft whine escaped her throat. “I hate the cold,” she muttered to herself.

“Cin.” Blaze let out an exasperated sigh. 

“I don’t wanna hear it,” Tate said to her Cinderace. “You’ve got the whole fire thing going for you.” A chill ran up her spine and she pulled her jacket around her, zipping it up close to her neck. As she did so, Xena jumped off of her lap, stretching on the floor of the train, then shook out her fur. 

Tate sighed. “I miss the beach already.”

Xena rubbed her head against Tate’s leg, and Tate smiled and patted the pokemon’s head. She listened as the conductor announced their destination, and she peered out the window, looking to the front of the train as the station came into view. To her surprise, trees had started to dot their surroundings as they left the tundra behind. 

Tate and Blaze stood, stretching in sync, then Tate grabbed her pack from beside her and swung it over her shoulders. She adjusted it against her back, then as the train began to slow, she led the way out of their seat and towards the door. When the train finally came to a screechy stop, the doors opened, and a breeze blew her black hair back slightly. She quickly pulled it back around her, tucking it behind her ear and pulling her beanie over her ears. Together, the three of them stepped out of the train and moved across the platform and into the warmth of the station. 

Blaze stayed dutifully at her side, her partner in crime from the very beginning, since she was just a child. A gift from Leon, her neighbor from back home in Postwick, and older brother of her best friend, Hop. It seemed like an eternity ago. Leo was Champion of Galar, then, only recently dethroned, and by herself, no less. She smiled smugly at the memory. She watched as Xena trotted excitedly ahead of her and began licking the face of a child that pointed to her. He tugged on his mother’s arm, but the woman paid no mind to her child, too engrossed in her conversation with the other adult before her. The child giggled and dropped to his knees as he patted Xena, and when Tate walked passed them, Xena gave the child a friendly yip before trotting after her master once more. 

As they neared the door, Tate could see that the wind had started to pick up. The snowflakes that had started to fall listlessly from the sky now whipped up along the landscape, shading the world in gray. For a moment, the wind settled, but still, visibility was limited slightly. She debated waiting in the station for the sky to clear, but her attention was drawn to two figures standing outside. From where she stood, they appeared to be a man and a woman, deep in conversation. 

She pulled the map out of the side pocket of her bag and examined it for a moment. The town of Freezington wasn’t far from the station. Maybe they could point her in the right direction. It would be nice to get a hot meal and a warm shower, she thought. And a proper bed to sleep in, too. She carefully folded the map back up and slipped it back into her pack. 

“C’mon,” she said to Blaze. “Let’s see about getting some dinner.”

Xena strode ahead of them as they left the station. She pressed her nose to the ground, circling around them, but keeping her master in view and in close proximity as she did so. Now outside, Tate could clearly hear that the conversation between the man and woman was actually an argument between a father and daughter.

Tate guessed the blonde haired woman to be around her age; a young adult like herself looking to step out into the world on her own for the first time. The argument sounded vaguely similar to one she had had with her own mother not too long ago. She had been fortunate enough to travel around Galar with Hop as teenagers, but leaving the Galar region completely was a far more difficult endeavor to convince her mother. But she wasn’t a child any longer, and her mother knew that soon, her little Pidgey would have to spread her wings.

It seemed this father, however, was unable to let his daughter go just yet.

“Lay off already,” the girl whined. “I don’t need you breathing down my neck! All I want to do is go to the Max Lair!”

“Come in, Nia,” the man said playfully. “That place is dirty and musty. I told you we’d have our own adventure, didn’t I?”

“Oh, what a generous and totally unwanted offer,” she said, rolling her eyes. “No thanks, man.”

“Be reasonable, Nia,” he started, but before he could continue, Tate’s presence had been noticed.

Nia turned to her, her gaze narrowed for a moment, then she smiled. “Hey,” she called out to her. “Back me up here, will ya?”

Tate hesitated, blinking at them. “Um. What?”

“Honestly, Nia,” the man said with a sigh. “Why do you have to drag innocent bystanders into this?”

Nia gestured to Tate wildly. “You see any crazy father chasing her around the world?”

The man frowned, then glanced at Tate. “How old are you?”

“Uh. Nineteen.”

Nia turned to her father. “See? She’s only a year older than me! Come on, Dad, give it a break already!”

“I actually just ditched my dad back on the train,” Tate said, thrusting a thumb over her shoulder.

The man narrowed his gaze on her, then folded his arms across his chest. “Funny,” he said. “Don’t be giving my daughter any ideas.”

“I’m just trying to get to Freezington,” Tate said.

“Well, you’re not too far,” the man said. “That’s where we’re staying.”

Nia rolled her eyes. “It’s the only town in this damn wasteland.”

The man grinned, ignoring his daughter’s comment. “We’re on an Adven-tour!”

“An Adven-tour?” Tate echoed curiously. 

“We’re hunting down all the legends in the area,” he explained. “A little father-daughter bonding trip. But, apparently my daughter doesn’t appreciate everything I’ve done for her.”

Tate glanced over his shoulder as he spoke, watching as Nia inched further away from him. She met Tate’s gaze, then grinned and nodded. She continued to back away as he rambled on.

“Now, I know she’s a fine trainer, and she can handle herself just fine. She gets it from me, afterall.” He thrust a thumb into his chest proudly. “We come from a long line of great trainers and adventurers. So, I understand it’s only natural for her to want to go out on her own and explore.”

Tate glanced at Nia once more, who was now yards away. She did a silent cheer behind her father’s back before turning her heels in the snow and taking off, unbeknownst to her father.

“But, you gotta back me up here. I’m sure it wasn’t easy for your parents to let you go. Unless, of course, you just up and left in the middle of the night. You would never do that to your parents, though, right?”

“No,” Tate started. She pointed a finger to gesture behind him. “But I guess your daughter would.”

He turned quickly, then moaned loudly when he realized his daughter was gone.

“Oh, for -” He spun back towards Tate. “You couldn’t have warned me sooner?”

Tate grinned and shrugged. “Look, I’m not taking sides here. I’m cold and I hate it here already. I don’t know why I thought this was a good idea.”

“You’re ill prepared,” he said. “If only you had a good father that thinks of everything.” He threw his hands up in the air, exasperated. He turned his back on Tate, trudging through the snow and muttering. “I planned everything! All the cool spots to check out. And this is the thanks I get? Damn ungrateful kids. I bet she ran off to that Max Lair. It’s fine. You got this, Peony. We’ll find her and get back on track!”

He continued to mutter to himself as he walked away from Tate, leaving her alone in the falling snow. 

Tate glanced at Blaze. “Well, that was interesting,” she said. 

Blaze shrugged, then grinned.

Tate turned her attention back to Xena, who was playfully attempting to catch the flakes that fell from the sky, and she whistled, catching the Lycanrock’s attention. 

“No one ever did tell me which way Freezington is,” she muttered, but she stepped forward regardless, making her way away from the station and through the snow. In the distance, she thought she could see lights, and she made an educated guess to head in that direction. If Freezington was the only town in the tundra, then it was a safe assumption that the lights would lead her there. 


End file.
